Novel 1-(1,3-disubstituted-imidazolidyn-2-ylidene)-3-ethoxycarbonylmethylurea derivatives (3a-3j) were obtained from appropriate 1-aryl-3-arylsulfonyl-1H-imidazolidine-2-imines (1a-1j) and ethyl isocyanatoacetate (2), which were subjected to condensation. Seven compounds were tested for their antiviral activity against HSV-1 and CVB3 viruses. Among the tested compounds, 3c was found to be active against HSV-1, proving that 4-methoxy substituent as R and 4-methyl substituent as R1 are most beneficial for activity against this virus. Furthermore, 3e and 3g were active against CVB3, which demonstrated that both 4-methyl and 4-chloro substitution is tolerated as R1, whereas 4-chloro and 2-methoxy substituents are best as R. It was also shown that the active compounds are characterized by relatively big surface area, small ovality, and greatest HOMO and LUMO energies in comparison to the rest of the compounds.
Keywords: 1-Aryl-3-arylsulfonyl-1H-imidazolidine-2-imines; Coxsackievirus; Herpes simplex; antiviral activity; structure–activity relationship.